For Current Grad Students

Thesis Policies and Procedures

Students opting for the thesis tract will find that undergoing a thesis project will likely be the most rewarding aspect of their academic career. It also may be the most frustrating. To avoid the project from becoming overwhelming it is necessary to follow the guidelines carefully. Your graduate student handbook provides detailed guidelines, but reiterated here are a few things to consider:

1. Any student may register for Thesis I (proposal). It is wise to have an advisor by this time, but if you are confident that you would like to do a thesis project, by all means register. Normally this occurs in a student's second semester.

2. Should a student decide not to go on to complete the thesis (i.e., Thesis II), he or she may complete Thesis I and use the credits as elective credits toward the non-thesis tract.

3. Thesis writing guidelines are available in the ESS Department Office or from the ESS Chair.

4. Finishing the thesis defense does not mean you are done. Normally there will be some edits, followed by a final review from your committee, a review by the ESS Chair, and a review by the HSHP Dean. Each of these steps will take at least two weeks.

5. Beginning in the fall of 2012 the Ithaca College library will no longer require bound thesis hardcopies. They will require a PDF version that will include a scanned copy of the original signature page. The ESS Department Office, however, will require a bound hardcopy with an original signature page. Other hardcopies may be required by your thesis advisor.

6. Any thesis project not completed one year following the thesis defense comes under the stewardship of the thesis advisor. This means the advisor(s) have the rights to publish the data.